This thread is a collection of posts combined to showcase various dubstep labels which have pushed the various sounds that you hear today. Look through here to find out more about stuff you like, and to discover awesome new sounds.

As you can see, I have added tags. [deep] implies a more classic dubstep sound, filled with heavy subbass, and emphasis on percussion elements. [heavy] is.. well, heavy dubstep, not quite as noisy and distorted as [filthy], but still enough to have people look at you funny at stoplights.

Tags are there just to help you out to find labels you haven't heard of. Don't worry about them so much, they are supposed to be generalized/oversimplified.

Big ups to Thaliana, dmsuperman, bballguy2757, rk91 and Yorgan for helping with additions, as well as everyone in the comments who also made a post about labels, this was only possible thanks to you!

This is dubstep!

So, as a beginning of our wonderful musical journey, I present to you...

Buygore [filthy]

Borgores new label with a heavy, filthy sound with metal influences. Emphasis on Filthy and Metal

All releases are vinyl only, so getting your hands on these can prove a bit tricky. Imminent releases can be previewed on thier website though so go check it out!

DMZ (Digital Mystikz) [deep]

Digital Mystikz is Mala and Coki, with Loefah and Sgt. Pokes collaborating on some songs (but not actually participating in the operation of the DMZ record label). They also host the bi-monthly DMZ nightclub in Brixton. Their sound is characterized by a lot of sub-bass frequencies and dub influences.

You can distinctly hear that "wobble" sound that has since taken off into strange new directions, although many of the artists listed above has since had newer releases where they have varied their production up

Unfortunately, the drum & bass label Mindsaw has closed shop, and as a result Dubsaw is no longer functional (sadface)

Hessle Audio [deep]

Ramadanman, Ben UFO and Pangaea... Just let that sink in. The label's sound can best be summed up by the description on Resident Advisor "Hessle Audio releases electronic music full of sub bass around 140bpm."

Scuba's record label out of London, founded in 2003. A pretty influential label and recognized as one of the first dubstep labels. Another label that isn't afraid to push the boundaries of the sound, with the likes of Mount Kimbie, Joy Orbison and Boxcutter.

Kode9's record label, pretty famous for releasing things that are considered to be pushing the limits of the sound. Burial was first released on Hyperdub and since then the label has kept releasing people that further the sound.

A very varied label with sounds that can only be summed up as Hyperdub'y.

Possibly more Future Garage than Dubstep, Night slugs is a relatively new label with some quality releases. Their sound is synth heavy with sparse 808 kicks and snares and some 4/4 beats. For more information than you could possibly ever need on their tunes (seriously) check out this blog.

They are hardly a strictly dubstep label, but their sound is as progressive as it gets.

Planet Mu [IDM/FG/deep]

One of the quintessential IDM labels. Started in the mid-1990s by Mike Paradinas, in the 2000s Planet Mu has had a hand in dubstep by marketing artists such as Distance, iTAL tEK and Vex'd. More recently expanded to juke/footwork/ghettotech and the UK Funky scene.

Punch Drunk is another essential link in the Bristol axis. Founded by Peverelist, the label has been pushing the dub, jungle and techno-influenced sound of people like himself, RSD and Pinch since 2006. It is also home to two of the developers of the purple sound, Gemmy and Guido. Recently transitioning to a more Future Garage aesthetic. Their compo "Worth the Weight" released last year is a very recommendable tour of the Bristolian bass music scene.

Rottun Records is a label owned and started by Excision which encorporates very heavy "robot" style basslines, described by wikipedia as "...influence from the morphing basslines of drum and bass, the aggressive energy of heavy metal, and the laid back vibes of hip hop."
Here are some examples of what I am talking about.

Created by Appleblim and Shackleton in 2005 essentially to release some of their 12-inchers. Dark themes, minimalistic sounds and metal-influenced imagery. Credited with dubstep's initial crossovers to the techno scene, given its association in 2006 to Ricardo Villalobos.

One of the biggest dubstep labels, with artists such as Skream, Benga, Kode9, El-B and Hatcha all releasing material through it. The sounds varies quite a bit within the label, but this label has some of the most genre-defining artists in dubstep.

note: as you can see, this list is obviously nowhere near done yet! I don't want to pretend to know anything about DMZ, Tempa, Dub Police, or Circus, so ** I invite you guys to contribute and I will add it to the topic.**

Hopefully after a while we'll have a comprehensive guide to Dubstep that should be enough for anyone to find new sounds, as well as find out more about what they're listening to!

Bassdread[grime]
the famed duo of Baltimore's own Zeus the Sound Shaman and Halsey Ruckus, combined they are one of the Baltimore area’s leaders when it comes to conscious thought and the spiritual revolution at hand. Their DJ sets are highly infused with ever-present spirituality and filled with a high range of sounds, covering liquid funk to soulful dubstep!

I highly recommend checking out a label that is a friends of mine (CLRH2O) that runs it (Along with Stepping Forward and Force Recordings), it's called Tuff Love Dubs. It's a Tampa, FL, based label, and another good friend, Halo Nova, is on the label, along with We Bang, Getter, and a slew of other big names. Again, the label is fairly new compared to others, but a great one nonetheless. :-)

Find his record label and I will add it to this list of record labels that publish dubstep releases. Alternatively, find me a release of his that was published with one of the labels listed and I will add it there

Don't forget about H.E.N.C.H Recordings. There most notable artist's are Eddie K, Jakes and Giant.Cant think of any good examples besides this monster tune from Eddie K & Minus http://youtu.be/hSAORl5MG90?hd=1

Created by Appleblim and Shackleton in 2005 essentially to release some of their 12-inchers. Dark themes, minimalistic sounds and metal-influenced imagery. Credited with dubstep's initial crossovers to the techno scene, given its association in 2006 to Ricardo Villalobos.

One of the quintessential IDM labels. Started in the mid-1990s by Mike Paradinas, in the 2000s Planet Mu has had a hand in dubstep by marketing artists such as Distance, iTAL tEK and Vex'd. More recently expanded to juke/footwork/ghettotech and the UK Funky scene.

Punch Drunk is another essential link in the Bristol axis. Founded by Peverelist, the label has been pushing the dub, jungle and techno-influenced sound of people like himself, RSD and Pinch since 2006. It is also home to two of the developers of the purple sound, Gemmy and Guido. Recently transitioning to a more Future Garage aesthetic. Their compo "Worth the Weight" released last year is a very recommendable tour of the Bristolian bass music scene.

They have 3 free releases and a new release soon. I love all of their stuff that is coming out. the facebook page has a player on it with a lot of tracks they signed on it. Like the page to follow their releases.

Nice! There's a big lack of education about anything beyond YouTube dubstep in this subreddit, and I think this post, along with what I've got planned for the next few weeks (keep your eyes peeled ;] ) should help with that.

Tempa (2000-present) is a dubstep and garage record label run by Ammunition Promotions, out of the Truman Brewery, east London. Tempa are considered to be one of the founding labels of the dubstep sound, and are part of a larger umbrella of labels (including Soulja, Road, Vehicle, Shelflife, Texture, Lifestyle and Bingo) and club events (such as Forward>> held at Plastic People in Shoreditch) run by Ammunition.
Tempa have released music by such dubstep luminaries as Skream, Benga, Loefah, Coki, Horsepower Productions, Kode9, Headhunter and DJ Hatcha, and were responsible for dubstep's most commercially successful "cross-over" hit, Night by Benga and Coki in late 2007.

Ok, I'll come clean. Yes of course I realized that, I submitted a bunch of the record labels. I was merely doing a bit of satire about how, usually, whenever anyone talks about labels for music in here people freak out.

But their songs exist on the scene, and are played a lot. You can't deny the fact that their songs are still quite popular with others, ergo why I suggested they could be included on this list of 'labels that have personified a sound and have signed artists that keep making that particular style of dubstep'

although you're right, deadmau5/skrillex/feed me are 80% electro, and to be honest, we want to introduce people to NEW sounds. Nearly everyone here has already heard of them, and in many cases, those artists are the reason those people are here.

To be fair, some of Skrillex's songs are dubstep. If you like Skrillex, listen to Feed Me and Deadmau5's newer stuff. Because they all sound the same, lol. In all seriousness... I don't know. When Skrillex came along he had a fairly unique sound, it's just everyone else is copying it now.

This is about dubstep, and dubstep labels. They aren't dubstep labels at all. Skrillex made 2 dubstep tracks. That isn't enough to warrant an entire label being grouped in. If skrillex gets signed to a dubstep label I'm sure he'll be included in the list.

But their songs exist on the scene, and are played a lot. You can't deny the fact that their songs are still quite popular with others, ergo why I suggested they could be included on this list of 'labels that have personified a sound and have signed artists that keep making that particular style of dubstep'

Brostep, named because it's waht passes as dubstep in the frat bro scene, is what you probably consider "dubstep" based on you even asking me. It has more glitch-y midrange wobbles, yaws, noises. Clubstep is a word that skrillex came up with himself in an interview. Basically beacuse he uses a four to the floor beat, and housey-trancey synths a lot.

LIKE I SAID, however, skrillex is electro house. Four to the floor, synths that are blatantly electro in nature. (compare the synths to wolfgang gartner, deadmau5, daft punk). There is no denying that skrillex carries a lot of dubstep influence, but it simply isn't traditional duubstep. Don't get me wrong dude, I love brostep, and even produce it. And I'm the first to believe that skrillex's production skill and quality is top-tier.

All I'm saying is it isn't quite the kind of dubstep this thread is about.

Then why assume I probably have no knowledge of genres, with you being an entrenched member of the frat bro scene and all, producing similar music of your own, and then dismissing these artists you can't seem to stop talking about?

Why not support it being listed, to allow everyone the same exposure to all versions of the genre anyway?

I would absolutely love to stop having to use youtube links to send tracks to people, but until there's another place with such a wide collection of the music for listening (that don't require extra steps to play the track) we have no hope.